Trailer Hitch for Prado

[Jaymes]

Good Day,

I am looking at getting a trailer hitch for my 1996 Prado, and found that the frame at the rear is not the same as on a 96 4Runner. I know the worries with towing with the 1KZ-TE, and my intent is to be able to short haul a utility trailer for garbage dump runs (appx 15 miles), and to be able to carry a hitch mounted basket for stuff like lawn care equipment or other stuff that will make a mess in the car. I tried a 4Runner hitch, and it fits width wise, but I would prefer to not drill extra holes in the frame if that is avoidable. Has anybody had luck getting a hitch mounted on their 4 door Prados?

Thanks,

Jay

 

[Morrtac]

Good Day,

I am looking at getting a trailer hitch for my 1996 Prado, and found that the frame at the rear is not the same as on a 96 4Runner. I know the worries with towing with the 1KZ-TE, and my intent is to be able to short haul a utility trailer for garbage dump runs (appx 15 miles), and to be able to carry a hitch mounted basket for stuff like lawn care equipment or other stuff that will make a mess in the car. I tried a 4Runner hitch, and it fits width wise, but I would prefer to not drill extra holes in the frame if that is avoidable. Has anybody had luck getting a hitch mounted on their 4 door Prados?

Thanks,

Jay

What brand did you get? I installed a Curt #13157, didnt need to drill anything.

 

[Jaymes]

Hmm, I got a 13087, that must be the problem it was listed as the correct one on the seller I purchased through. I will look into the 13157. Thank you for all the help.

 

[Slogg]

Did you end up getting the correct hitch? I just purchased a Curt #13087. I haven’t installed it yet, because I’ve been trying to remove the old European hitch it came with. The 6 bolts are complexly rusted out and I’m having a hard time getting them removed. I’ve already stripped out one of the bolts and I’m afraid I’m going to have to drill it out and re-tap the hole.

 

[Jaymes]

Did you end up getting the correct hitch? I just purchased a Curt #13087. I haven’t installed it yet, because I’ve been trying to remove the old European hitch it came with. The 6 bolts are complexly rusted out and I’m having a hard time getting them removed. I’ve already stripped out one of the bolts and I’m afraid I’m going to have to drill it out and re-tap the hole.

Looking at it now, I believe that I am just stupid, and either one will fit(same bolt pattern, just round vs square tubing). You do need to trim the bar they send you with the welded nuts if you want to use that(the frame on the Prado has a rear crossbar that the 4runners don't have). The nuts welded on the right side of my frame have just enough surface rust to not catch the threads, so I may have to hit them with a tap or a bit of oil to get those in.

 

[Slogg]

Looking at it now, I believe that I am just stupid, and either one will fit(same bolt pattern, just round vs square tubing). You do need to trim the bar they send you with the welded nuts if you want to use that(the frame on the Prado has a rear crossbar that the 4runners don't have). The nuts welded on the right side of my frame have just enough surface rust to not catch the threads, so I may have to hit them with a tap or a bit of oil to get those in.

Well I hope that you can get yours fitted without too many issues. I'll report back on my experience once I get back at it. Its probably going to take me a while because I'm currently working on installing a new exhaust system, and I'm at the hard part of the job where I need to remove the dump pipe at the turbo.

 

[Morrtac]

Looking at it now, I believe that I am just stupid, and either one will fit(same bolt pattern, just round vs square tubing). You do need to trim the bar they send you with the welded nuts if you want to use that(the frame on the Prado has a rear crossbar that the 4runners don't have). The nuts welded on the right side of my frame have just enough surface rust to not catch the threads, so I may have to hit them with a tap or a bit of oil to get those in.

I added a 1/4" spacer plate on both sides, didn't want to cut.

 

[NambanVZJ95]

What brand did you get? I installed a Curt #13157, didnt need to drill anything.

I installed this hitch and only had to trim the brackets to get them into the frame rails. We were moving at the time so I didn’t take any pictures of the install. Had to pull the exhaust to the side with a ratchet strap through the wheel, trim brackets to clear some burrs or other obstruction inside the frame rails, used some washers on the back bolts as spacers for an offset or weld bead. Rock solid after hauling a rickety old cargo shelf cross country full of cat litter and Jerry cans.

 

[alexskills]

I've just received my curt hitch receiver. I was hoping somebody here would be able to post photos of their installed hitch to give me a better understanding of how it should sit. I see how the crossmember hinders the insertion of the bracket. I'm confused as to how the hitch sits on the frame due to the crossmember folding onto the bottom of the frame.

 

[NambanVZJ95]

I've just received my curt hitch receiver. I was hoping somebody here would be able to post photos of their installed hitch to give me a better understanding of how it should sit. I see how the crossmember hinders the insertion of the bracket. I'm confused as to how the hitch sits on the frame due to the crossmember folding onto the bottom of the frame.

I've just received my curt hitch receiver. I was hoping somebody here would be able to post photos of their installed hitch to give me a better understanding of how it should sit. I see how the crossmember hinders the insertion of the bracket. I'm confused as to how the hitch sits on the frame due to the crossmember folding onto the bottom of the frame.

 

[NambanVZJ95]

View attachment 4110544View attachment 4110545View attachment 4110546

This is how mine looks. The bar with the weld nuts sticks out the back of the frame slightly so I stacked a few washers to add thickness where the frame rail ended. Don’t have pictures of the trimming (of the flat bars not the frame) needed to get the bars with the weld nuts to sit in the frame rails, but it was not bad. Cut off disc or bench grinder would get it done. Had to tap some of the factory threads to get the paint out of them. This setup pulled a trailer from basically Mexico to North Carolina.